Misplaced Pages

#949050

41-625: The Dutch Reformed Church was introduced to South Africa by the Dutch East India Company 's settlement at Cape Town in 1652. The first formal congregation was established in 1665 under the jurisdiction of the classis (presbytery) of Amsterdam . Despite the permanent takeover of the Cape Colony by the UK in 1806, the church remained semi-established with congregations supported from government funds. In 1824 an autonomous synod

82-704: A General Assembly that meets every third year. Sermons are primarily given in Afrikaans . It has a presbytery in Namibia and congregations in Botswana , Zambia and Zimbabwe . The church is a member of the World Communion of Reformed Churches . Dutch Reformed Church The Dutch Reformed Church ( Dutch : Nederlandse Hervormde Kerk , pronounced [ˈneːdərlɑntsə ɦɛrˈvɔr(ə)mdə ˈkɛr(ə)k] , abbreviated NHK [ˌɛnɦaːˈkaː] )

123-603: A merger on 7 December 1885 between the NHKA and the NGK seemed successful initially, an increasing number of church members opposed the merging of the two churches and returned to the former NHKA. Reverend M.J. Goddefroy played a central role in the re-establishment of the church. The Anglo Boer War played a major role in South African history and therefore also the history of the NHKA. Many ministers and church members died during

164-732: Is one of the oldest Dutch Reformed Church built in America. The largest Dutch Reformed body in North America, the Christian Reformed Church in North America , split off from Reformed Church in America in 1857 under the leadership of Gijsbert Haan . Smaller related denominations and federations include the Canadian and American Reformed Churches , the Free Reformed Churches of North America (FRC),

205-872: Is strongly influenced under the Dutch reformed church, the first known church established in the country is "De Oude kerk" in Batavia in 1640. Christianity in Indonesia, like Sri Lanka, has been nationalised into different branches of Protestantism while retaining many of the reformed church elements, such as Protestant Church in Indonesia . The Dutch Reformed Church went with migrants to the Americas , beginning in 1628 in New Amsterdam . St. Thomas Reformed Church, founded in 1660 in St. Thomas , Danish West Indies , became

246-848: The Belgic Confession , the Heidelberg Catechism and the Canons of Dort . The church is part of the World Communion of Reformed Churches and the Confentus Reformatus . The NHKA adheres to internal regulations (Church Order) and the General Church Assembly (AKV) allows for amendments every three years which takes place under church vote. Die Hervormer Die Almanak Konteks Blitspos Social Media It has 130,000 members and about 300 congregations, 38 regional Synods that meet annually and

287-638: The Canons of Dort to the Confessions. The Canons of Dort, together with the previously adopted Belgic Confession and Heidelberg Catechism, were called the Drie formulieren van Enigheid (Three Forms of Unity). Most conflicts and splits in the Church arose because of disagreement over the substance and interpretation of these doctrinal documents. The government of the Dutch Republic , which had instigated

328-746: The Dutch East India Company and its workers, the Dutch Reformed Church was established in Ceylon in 1642. The Groote Kerk , built in 1755, still stands in Galle . The Dutch Reformed Church of Ceylon officially changed its name in 2007 to the Christian Reformed Church of Sri Lanka to reflect its Christian identity in the nation, rather than on its Dutch colonial heritage. As of 2007, its membership stands around 5,000, comprising both communicant and baptised members in 29 congregations, preaching stations, and mission outposts. Christianity in Indonesia

369-768: The Great Trek . The Voortrekkers in this movement decided to split off from the Nederduits Gereformeerde Kerk in the Cape Colony . The Dutch minister, Erasmus Smit, who sent by the Nederlandsch Zendeling Genootschap from The Netherlands became the first NHKA minister on 21 May 1837. Congregations were founded in the colonies of Natal , the Free State (province) and the Transvaal Colony . In 1841

410-857: The Heritage Reformed Congregations (HRC), the Netherlands Reformed Congregations (NRC), the Protestant Reformed Churches in America (PRC), and the United Reformed Churches in North America (URC). The Dutch were mainly Protestant and Catholic before arrival to America, but became dominantly Protestant after settling in America. They spread their religion by forming bonds with the natives in The Ohio River Valley. In 1766, ministers of

451-826: The Nadere Reformatie , and a number of splits in the 19th century that greatly diversified Dutch Calvinism. The church functioned until 2004, the year it merged with the Reformed Churches in the Netherlands and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the Kingdom of the Netherlands to form the Protestant Church in the Netherlands (PKN), a united church of both Reformed and Evangelical Lutheran theological orientations. At

SECTION 10

#1732772203950

492-962: The Three Sister Churches of South Africa (the Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa (NGK) ( Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk ), the Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa (NHK) ( Nederduitsch Hervormde Kerk ), the Reformed Churches in South Africa ( Gereformeerde Kerke in Suid-Afrika )), the Afrikaans Protestant Church ( Afrikaanse Protestantse Kerk ), and the Uniting Reformed Church in Southern Africa ( Verenigende Gereformeerde Kerk in Suid-Afrika ). Through

533-777: The World Alliance of Reformed Churches (WARC) congress in Ottawa opened in a dramatic manner when South African Delegates under the leadership of Dr. Allan Boesak refused to take communion with the NHKA delegation. The NHKA sanctioned racial discrimination featured prominently during the meeting and the NHKA was suspended from the WARC. Support for the Apartheid Regime from the NHKA was not uncritically accepted by all, and many dissenters such as professors Adrianus van Selms, Cas Labuschagne, Berend Gemser and Albert Geyser left

574-470: The 19th century, theological liberalism led to splits in the Dutch Reformed Church. King William I of the Netherlands imposed a new form of government for the church, in which the civil authorities selected the commissioners to the National Synod in 1816, making it increasingly difficult for ministers to speak out against perceived errors. In 1834, the minister Hendrik de Cock of the town of Ulrum

615-713: The American missionary Daniel Lindley took over the leadership from Smit who had at that time become very unpopular amongst the Voortrekkers . A Dutch minister, Dirk Van der Hoff , took over the leadership of the church in the Transvaal in 1853. The founding of the oldest South African university ( Stellenbosch University ) and the establishment of the Theological Seminary of the Dutch Reformed Church in 1859 allowed for ministers to be trained locally. While

656-823: The Arminians' expulsion, subsequently prohibited the Reformed Church from assembling synodically. No Synod was held in the Netherlands until after the end of the Republic in 1795. The 17th and early 18th centuries were the age of the Dutch Nadere Reformatie (best translated in English as the Further Reformation ), led primarily by Gisbertus Voetius and Wilhelmus à Brakel , which was greatly influenced by English Puritanism . In

697-688: The Dutch Reformed Church founded Queen's College , which would later become Rutgers College , in the Province of New Jersey . Today, Rutgers University is a major public research institution in the state of New Jersey . As one of nine colonial colleges clustered in the eastern United States, Rutgers serves as a reminder of early Dutch cultural influence in the North American colonies. Former U.S. Presidents Martin Van Buren and Theodore Roosevelt , both of Dutch descent, were affiliated with

738-428: The NHKA since 1979, making it one of the first churches to allow for women to serve as ministers. The first female minister in the NHKA was Professor Yolanda Dreyer. Dr. Elsabé Kloppers was the first female minister to obtain a doctorate in theology. After many years of debate about homosexuality in the church, the 68th General Church Assembly stated that homosexual persons are welcomed, will be comforted and supported in

779-705: The NHKA. The assembly also stated it will do everything in its power to root out homophobia, gay-hate and any other derogatory behaviour against homosexual persons. Homosexual ministers are welcomed if they remain celibate. The NHKA falls within the Reformed branch of Protestant Christianity . The NHKA confesses three Ecumenical Creeds namely the Nicene Creed , the Apostles Creed and the Athanasian Creed . The church has three doctrinal standards:

820-543: The Netherlands). It was the larger of the two major Reformed denominations, after the Reformed Churches in the Netherlands ( Gereformeerde kerk ) was founded in 1892. It spread to the United States , South Africa , Indonesia , Sri Lanka , Brazil , and various other world regions through Dutch colonization . Allegiance to the Dutch Reformed Church was a common feature among Dutch immigrant communities around

861-571: The Protestant movement. Two years later, in 1568, following an attack on the Netherlands by the forces of the Duke of Alba, many Netherlanders fled to the German city of Wesel , where a Synod was convened at which the Belgic Confession and Heidelberg Catechism were adopted, and provisions were made for the offices of pastor, elder, teacher and deacon. The first Synod of 23 Dutch Reformed leaders

SECTION 20

#1732772203950

902-441: The Republic. Although it remained endorsed by the royal family, the Netherlands never had any public church afterwards. The Reformation was a time of religious violence between the established Catholic Church, Protestants and governments, in some cases. Efforts to form a Reformed church in the southern provinces stemmed from a secret meeting of Protestant leaders at Antwerp in 1566, and despite Spanish repression, many nobles joined

943-486: The church has had a long and complicated history when it comes to Apartheid. The church defined itself as a "volkskerk" and evangelism was aimed primarily at the "Afrikanervolk". The NHKA was initially an active member of the international ecumenical community but a break from the ecumenical movement came during the Cottesloe Consultation in 1960 which lead to the NHKA's "Fifty Years of Isolation". In 1982

984-416: The church, with some like Geyser being accused of heresy. Other theologians and church leaders who remained within the NHKA and opposed Apartheid were stigmatized and harassed with a slew disciplinary actions. After the end of Apartheid, the church increasingly re-evaluated its stance concerning Apartheid and its theological grounding thereof. In 2001, the congress of the church accepted a confession in which it

1025-471: The eye on the 69th AKV, five ministers of the NHKA (professors Johan Buitendag, Ernest van Eck, Jimmy Loader, Andries van Aarde and Yolanda Dreyer) made a public statement condemning the theological justification of Apartheid. During the 69th AKV, a majority of the church's ministers and elders voted that the NHKA's support of Apartheid was in contradiction to the Gospel. The term "volkskerk" was also removed from

1066-653: The first Dutch Reformed Church in the Caribbean . During the period of Dutch settlement in Brazil in the 17th century colonists organised the Reformed Church in Pernambuco . In Canada and the United States , the oldest and second largest body is the Reformed Church in America , which was the American branch of the Dutch Reformed Church in the Netherlands between 1628 and 1819. The Brookville Reformed Church

1107-552: The largest church body in the Netherlands until the middle of the 20th century, when it was overtaken by the Catholic Church . The rapid secularisation of the Netherlands in the 1960s dramatically reduced participation in the mainstream Protestant church. From the '60s onward, a number of attempts were made to effect a reunion with the Reformed Churches in the Netherlands ( Gereformeerde Kerken in Nederland ). This led to

1148-405: The law demanded that every public official should be a communicant member. Consequently, the Church had close relations with the Dutch government. A privilege of members of the Dutch Reformed Church was that they could have their businesses open on Sundays, otherwise considered a religious day and not one for business. The Dutch Reformed Church was officially disestablished in 1795 with the end of

1189-491: The number of churches had increased from 20 to 183 congregations. The church in South Africa also did not remain immune to the wars raging in the rest of the world. World War II affected many members. Most notably, professor Adrianus van Selms (1906–1984) who served in the NHKA at University of Pretoria became a Prisoner of war in Japan where he wrote numerous theological treatises. Due to its Afrikaner Nationalist identity,

1230-500: The ordinances of the church. The decision led to a backlash from the NHKA's politically right leaning minority and 13 congregations declared themselves independent from the NHKA and members of the "Geloofsbond van Hervormde Gemeentes". Women have been serving in charity work in the NHKA since 1940 under the Nederduitsch Hervormde Sustersvereniging (NHSV) . Female ministers have been serving in

1271-598: The pluralistic nature of the merged church, which they allege contains partly contradicting Reformed and Lutheran confessions. This conservative group also opposes the ordination of women and the blessing of same-sex unions in Christian churches , which have been adopted as practices by the merged church. Dutch migrants carried the Dutch Reformed Church with them, planting several Reformed denominations in Kenya (The Reformed Church of East Africa), South Africa , including

Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa (NHK) - Misplaced Pages Continue

1312-495: The time of the merger, the Church had 2 million members organised in 1,350 congregations. A minority of members of the church chose not to participate in the merger and instead formed the Restored Reformed Church (HHK). Before the demise of the Dutch Republic in 1795, the Dutch Reformed Church enjoyed the status of "public" or "privileged" church. Though it was never formally adopted as the state religion ,

1353-649: The two churches uniting with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the Kingdom of the Netherlands ( Evangelisch-Lutherse Kerk in het Koninkrijk der Nederlanden ) to establish the Protestant Church in the Netherlands in 2004. The 2004 merger led to a separation in which a number of congregations and members of the Dutch Reformed Church separated to form the Restored Reformed Church ( Hersteld Hervormde Kerk ). Estimations of their membership vary from 35,000 up to 70,000 in about 120 local congregations served by 88 ministers. The Restored Reformed Church disapproves of

1394-533: The war or were sent as Prisoners of war in British Colonies. The British Scorched earth strategy meant women and children were placed in Concentration camps. It also meant that many churches and archival material was destroyed. After the war, the church was re-established and Dutch ministers (like L.E. Brandt) were once again sent to South Africa. This was a period of immense growth and by 1956

1435-539: The world and became a crucial part of Afrikaner nationalism in South Africa. The Dutch Reformed Church was founded in 1571 during the Protestant Reformation in the Calvinist tradition, being shaped theologically by John Calvin , but also other major Reformed theologians. The church was influenced by various theological developments and controversies during its history, including Arminianism ,

1476-433: Was established at the Cape, removing the church from control from the Netherlands. This autonomous synod would become the NGK. The unwillingness of Dutch ministers to serve in a British-controlled colony meant that Scottish Presbyterian ministers with British sympathies were introduced to the church. In the 1830s, Boers left the Cape Colony and established republics in the interior of South Africa in what came to be known as

1517-444: Was held in Dordrecht in 1578. This synodical meeting is not to be confused with the better known Second Synod of Dort of 1618. Large groups of Marranos settled in Emden and converted to Christianity . Mostly all Marranos , many Jewish groups converted to Christianity around 1649 to the Nederduitsche , Niederdeutsche church later on Dutch Reformed Church. In the latter meeting, the Church fathers expelled Arminians and added

1558-415: Was held in October 1571 in the German city of Emden . The Synod of Emden is generally considered to be the founding of the Dutch Reformed Church, the oldest of the Reformed churches in the Netherlands. The Synod both affirmed the actions of the earlier Synod of Wesel, as well as established presbyterian church government for the Dutch Reformed Church. The first Synod to be located in the Dutch Republic

1599-437: Was stated that the church takes note of the crimes that were committed under apartheid, even by church members and that the church confesses its guilt before God and fellow human beings. The 67th General Church Assembly (AKV) decided in 2004 to re-apply for membership to the Reformed Ecumenical Council and the World Alliance of Reformed Churches . The 68th AKV refused to take any binding decisions about re-applying. In 2010, with

1640-410: Was the largest Christian denomination in the Netherlands from the onset of the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century until 1930. It was the traditional denomination of the Dutch royal family and the foremost Protestant denomination until 2004, the year it helped found and merged into the Protestant Church in the Netherlands (the largest Protestant and second largest Christian communion in

1681-475: Was told by church leaders that he could not preach against certain colleagues, who he believed held erroneous views. He and his congregation seceded from the Dutch Reformed Church. In time, the Afscheiding (the Separation) led to the departure of 120 congregations from the Dutch Reformed Church. In 1886, another separation, the Doleantie , occurred, led by Dutch Reformed journalist, theologian and politician Abraham Kuyper . The Dutch Reformed Church remained

Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa (NHK) - Misplaced Pages Continue

#949050